Recap of 2016 | Property Market

“Since the implementation of the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework in June 2013, overall sales transaction volume of private homes has fallen by half, and has stayed at fairly low levels for the past three years. The 15 percent Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) on foreigners and companies remains a key deterrent to private residential property investment in Singapore. Overall private home prices declined by 10.8 percent in Q3 2016 compared to the last peak in Q3 2013, and is seen as a stable fall compared to the over 60 percent spike from Q2 2009. Though encouraging sales results of some well-located project launches in the second and third quarters of the year may reflect tentative signs of market revival, headwinds could derail any recovery trajectory. The slowing economic growth, tighter immigration and foreign workforce policies, and the threat of an inter...